Two stores between its covers

Tiny Blairstown boasts two independent bookshops

By ROBIN FRIEDMAN | The STAR-LEDGER | January 2, 2003

In what is considered by some the middle of nowhere, tiny Blairstown
boasts not just one, but two independently owned bookstores — a few
stores apart on the same side of tiny Main Street, and both owned by
retired residents pursuing their second careers.

Blairstown is among a handful of towns in the Garden State to host
more than one independent bookstore. Among the others is Princeton,
which has three (four if you count the university store, five if you
count the theological seminary store). But Ivy League Princeton is far
better known and more accessible than unassuming Blairstown in bucolic
Warren County.

In recent years, many friendly downtown bookshops have given way to
huge chain bookstores stationed along busy highways. These
superstores, of the Barnes & Noble or Borders ilk, offer giant
selections, slashed prices and attractive coffee bars, and have
overmatched the small independents.

But, according to the American Booksellers Association, 4,066
independent bookstores still operate in the United States, of which 89
thrive in New Jersey.

“It's fun,” says Herman Shoemaker, owner, with his wife of 47 years,
Pat, of Book Nest. “It works quite nicely.”

Both owners stress that Blairstown’s bookstores complement one another
rather than compete. That may explain why both bookshops are able to
thrive in an area that barely has the population to support Nathan’s
Hot Dogs, which closed last year.

Bebe’s, located at 31 Main St. and housed inside a sea-green building
with a mahogany porch, sells new hardcovers and paperbacks for adults
and children, as well as children's toys, greeting cards and
calendars.

Bebe’s also does a brisk business in gourmet coffee and homemade
cookies, breads and scones, baked by its owner, a blue-eyed book-lover
with short, wheat-colored hair. In the fall, the sumptuous scent of
pumpkin spice coffee greets customers at the door.

Down the street, past the Gourmet Tomato Pie Company, Post-Time Pub
and Joyce's Travel Agency, Book Nest, at 17 Main St., does a brisk
business in collector's dolls, out-of-print books and gifts like
porcelain figurines, scented candles, jewelry boxes and miniature
ships inside bottles.

Book Nest, too, is housed in an old building, a handsome blue house
with wide white columns and a wooden porch. Both stores fit into the
streetscape of Main Street, which, though small, is both historic and
lovely.

How a tiny town can comfortably support two independent bookstores, in
an age when most towns cannot support one, is a mystery to both
owners.

But Pat Shoemaker dares to venture a guess.

“There's nothing else to do around here,” she says with a
laugh. “Except read.”

Herman Shoemaker elaborates on the point. “There's a high level of
education in this town that bolsters reading,” he agrees.

According to the 2000 Census, about 13 percent of Blairstown's 5,700
residents hold a graduate or professional degree, second in the county
behind Allamuchy with 15 percent.

While the northwest region of New Jersey is known for its picturesque
farms, wooded mountain ridges and scenic vistas, it also is home a
fair number of writers and artists looking for peace and quiet. These
customers make up the bulk of traffic at both stores.

“It's true,” says Bailey. “This area is quite intellectual. People
like to read.”

Bailey opened her store three years ago. She had spent 23 years as an
administrator in hospitals, and moved to the area from Long Island
seven years earlier.

“I just kept talking and talking about opening a little bookstore,”
she says. “One day, a friend of mine told me there was a store
available on Main Street, but I had only one day to make up my mind,
because someone else was interested in it. They apparently wanted to
open a tire business, but my friend wanted to see a bookstore on Main
Street instead.”

Bailey dove in with 24 hours' notice. Her husband, Emera Bailey, a
retired U.S. Navy captain and cabinetmaker, designed the space and
built all the wooden bookshelves.

Bailey named the store in honor of her older sister, Anita Rothbart,
who, as a child, could not pronounce the word “baby” after her little
sister was born. She instead called Bailey “bebe,” which stuck as a
lifelong nickname. Anita Rothbart died seven years ago.

Book Nest, too, is both snug and charming. Its space is narrow but
extremely deep, with rooms that seem never-ending. The children's room
contains what the Shoemakers like to call their “book nest,” a cozy
wooden box complete with soft blanket.

Shoemaker does a lot of business over the Internet. In addition to out-
of-print books, he sells books that are about to go out of print and
some new titles, all heavily discounted.

“We feel we're unique,” he says. “We enjoy our customers. People come
in and tell us how quaint and friendly it is here. The big chains
can't do that for people.”